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The year 2020 has witnessed unforeseen challenges triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic as countries around the world imposed strict restrictions to halt the spread of the virus.
The year 2021 is around the corner. It is time for us to bid farewell to this unusual year. In this episode of the "My 2020" video series, we are pleased to be joined by Rupert Hoogewerf, better known by his Chinese name Hu Run.
As the chairman and chief researcher of the Hurun Report, a research, media and investments business best known for the Hurun Rich List, Rupert Hoogewerf shares with us the economic impact of COVID-19 based on trends that could be detected from changes in this year's ranking of the richest in China.
In a health crisis of a kind rarely seen in the last century, the healthcare industry has seen an upturn in spite of economic stagnation. It is now the largest source of wealth for Chinese entrepreneurs. In this sense, the crisis could be where opportunities lie. It depends on how it is looked at.
Rupert Hoogewerf highlights China's new economy which he calls ABCDEF: AI, Block chain, Chips, Data, E-commerce and Fintech. All are related to 5G as the new economy should bolster China's growth in the year ahead.
Rupert Hoogewerf also takes a look at China's companies. He says that 40 percent of unicorns globally originate in China, another 40 percent the US and 20 percent from the rest of the world. The rich chart is also changing with the landscape of China's biggest tech giants, long known by the acronym BAT – Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent – now becoming TAM: Tencent, Alibaba and Meituan. He also backs grass-roots entrepreneurship in the interview.
Impressed by China's rapid development in the past 20 years, Hoogewerf says that for the next 20 years, China needs to manage the wealth it has created and energize new economic trends. He also highlights the importance of cultivating professional investors for China's long-term development.
(Produced by Han Xiaomeng, Ni Tao, Lu Dong, Yan Yiqiao and Tang Shining)
